Love Drunk

A Gamble

Jacques exhaled as he raked his hair with his fingers— a habit he'd developed which indicated that he was beginning to lose control. The ominous feeling, the ticking of the clock loomed over him, and with Alex seeming to be unwilling was making him desperate.

"You said," Jacques started, remembering their conversation the other night. "You said you came here to get married but your fiancé cheated on you," he reminded Alex of her dilemma which led her to the bar. "If your fiancé loved you, he wouldn't do that right?"

"What's he got to do with this?" Alex looked upset, her blue eyes stormy as the angry sea.

Clearly, the topic was a sore one to her, but Jacques wouldn't let her off.

"A lot," he answered. "Because it means you cannot be sure of love. Some people would say it but not mean it. But I'm not like that. I won't lie to you. I will not tell you I've fallen in love with you because it's a whopping fib. But I like you— I'm attracted to you. I wouldn't be able to make love with you last night if I wasn't."

"You're not going to give me love but you're offering me good s*x?" Alex commented in amazement but Jacques was not finished with his words.

"That— and a whole lot of other things.  I promise I'll respect you, take care of you— give you anything you want that money can buy."

"I don't need your money," Alex interrupted, but Jacques didn't believe that of course.

If she found out who he really was, he was sure she'd be singing another tune. But that wasn't the issue right now, nor that did he care if Alex would change.  He couldn't imagine marrying anyone else other than her.

"You told me you had to get married too, right?" Jacques added, remembering that fact as well.

She told him last night that her broken engagement would cause a lot of problems. Alex's situation might not be as serious as his, but the bottom line was that like him, Alexandra Lee had to get married too.

With that one last argument, he saw her freeze as if she just remembered that problem of hers. He watched as several emotions crossed her face before she hesitantly opened her lips to speak.

"I... Please let me think about it," she said softly and Jacques closed his eyes.  Time was something he couldn't afford to give.

"I only have less than five hours to get married," he announced, making Alex gasp. 

His birthday was until midnight, but the office where they had to register their marriage wouldn’t wait until then.

"But-but this is a huge decision!" she protested and Jacques nodded in defeat.

He already pushed her too much. He couldn't push her some more, he thought, just as Alex's phone rang. He watched her helplessly as she moved to the corner of the room to answer.

Puffing his cheeks, he clasped his hands and squeezed them hard. There was a point last night when he'd already given up. He thought he'd take his chances and challenge the will at court. But of course, his win was not guaranteed that way. Still, it was a gamble he was willing to take until she came. He's a man without religion, but at this moment in time, he prayed she'd give him an answer in his favor.

On the other hand, Alex felt relieved by the phone call. It gave her an excuse to get away from Jacques, at least, for a while. She's hungover, with the beginnings of a headache, and the events since she woke up worsened her stress level. She needed space to gather her thoughts. Just what did she get herself into? She wondered as she looked at her mobile phone, and was surprised, her mouth forming an O before she hastily answered.

"Doichi," she whispered softly upon answering, and a tender smile appeared on her face.  She wondered why he's calling her at this time. "Is there something wrong? You're in the middle of a tour, right?"

"Well, hello to you too, and yes, we're still on tour,"Doichi laughingly replied to her queries. "I'm on a little break actually," he continued, and Alex was glad there wasn't any problem.

So why was he calling?

"I did it!" Doichi exclaimed excitedly on the other end, and Alex wondered what "it" was. She didn't need to ask. "I was able to arrange my schedule so I can visit you in a couple of months' time instead of almost half a year."

"Really? That's great!" Of course, there's nothing better than being able to spend time with her favorite person. Right?

"Yeah. Do you think I can stay with you? Or do you want me to book a hotel instead?" he asked and she was confused. Why would he stay at a hotel? 

"Of course, you're staying with me," she announced, and Doichi chuckled.

"Are you sure?" he asked again, and again, she said yes. But Doichi couldn't seem to accept that answer.

"Lexie, you need to ask your husband first before giving me an answer," he softly scolded her, and her eyes went wide and wild, remembering her dilemma. "You're not the only one living in your house now. You need to ask your husband's opinion first."

Husband!

"So, how was the wedding?"Doichi asked, shifting the topic to something that gave her the shivers. What would she tell him?

"Ehrm… it was…" She was having trouble speaking.

She hadn't thought about what she's going to tell Doichi yet. Her last resort was to fess out, but she couldn't. Then, she remembered Jacques' proposal earlier.

"Good," she replied hurriedly. "Yeah, It was g-great," she continued, followed by a burst of nervous laughter. "As for your question earlier, of course, we'd be happy to have you."

"That's great then,"Doichi said, and Alex bit her lip, praying he wouldn't detect her nervousness. "I really regret not being able to attend your wedding," he continued, and she was very much grateful he wasn't here.

If not, not only her plan would've failed, but Kyle would've been killed— like totally annihilated.  Regardless of how gentle Doichi was to her, it wouldn't be the case to those who hurt her.